30,000 flee Palisades Fire as flames quickly spread, high winds slam Southern California
Thousands of people fled their homes as a brush fire in the Pacific Palisades quickly spread to 1,260 acres Tuesday, a blaze that authorities said could grow further as even stronger winds are expected through the night.
Click here for an evacuation map.
Winds in the area were blowing 40 mph when the wildfire sparked Tuesday morning before quickly exploding in size, spreading to 200 acres within an hour. The Los Angeles Fire Department first reported at 10:30 a.m. that the fire had broke out near 1190 North Piedra Morada Dr. Just hours later, around 3 p.m., fire authorities estimated it had reached 1,262 acres.
About 30,000 people have been evacuated while an estimated 10,367 houses remain threatened by the quickly moving flames, fire department and law enforcement officials said during a news conference Tuesday afternoon.
Santa Ana winds are expected to strengthen later in the evening, peaking from 10 p.m. Tuesday through 5 a.m. Wednesday, potentially complicating firefighting efforts and carrying flames even further.
"We're not out of the woods by any stretch of the imagination," Gov. Gavin Newsom told reporters Tuesday afternoon, saying that the state dispatched 110 fire engines to Southern California in anticipation of the high winds.
Newsom said he saw homes burning but authorities have not yet released an exact estimate for the damage.
Forecasters say gusts could reach up to 100 miles per hour in some parts of the region — likely the worst conditions seen since a windstorm in 2011 that left behind a $40 million in damage in Los Angeles County.
Mandatory evacuation orders were first announced around noon along with some evacuation warnings. The Pacific Coast Highway was completely shut down near Topanga Canyon Boulevard, according to the California Department of Transportation, as some drivers abandoned their cars on Sunset Boulevard to flee the flames growing closer.
The Los Angeles Fire Department first reported the blaze at 10:30 a.m., saying it sparked near 1190 North Piedra Morada Dr. and was estimated to be 20 acres at that time. About an hour later, around 11:30 a.m., the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection estimated the wildfire was 200 acres. Within hours, around 3 p.m., Cal Fire said it stood at 1,262 acres.
With the flames moving quickly Tuesday, fueled by powerful Santa Ana winds, some drivers abandoned their cars on Sunset near where the main LA roadway meets the PCH. Some said firefighters told them to get out and flee on foot. About 30 vehicles were left abandoned, according to the LA Fire Department.
Meanwhile, thousands of residents escaped their homes as firefighters continued battling the Pacific Palisades blaze.
Krishan Chaudry, a resident in the LA coastal community, said he could see flames burning from his backyard, which he said appeared suddenly. Thick, billowing plumes of black smoke were seen rising over the PCH as flames tore through hillsides.
"This happened just spur of the moment," Chaudry said. "We were just looking at the smoke, and then all of a sudden, we saw fire everywhere."
The Westwood Recreation Center has opened as an evacuation center and overnight shelter for evacuees and small animals, according to fire authorities.
The latest information from Cal Fire on evacuations and resources for those affected can be found here.
Many parts of Los Angeles and Ventura counties, including the area where the wildfire started, are facing a "Particularly Dangerous Situation" red flag warning this week. It's a relatively rare advisory the National Weather Service issues in more extreme cases, and it's the same warning that was issued just before the Mountain Fire tore through nearly 20,000 acres in neighboring Ventura County last year.
Forecasters have warned of a "life-threatening" windstorm that is likely the most powerful one to hit the region since 2011, which left behind millions of dollars in damage and led to 400,000 people losing power.
This week, Cal Fire has been preparing additional resources as much of the region braces for particularly strong Santa Ana winds, which can fuel and swiftly spread powerful wildfires. Gusts could up to around 60 to 70 mph in many areas and up to 100 mph in a few parts of Southern California, according to forecasters.
"This will likely be a life-threatening, destructive, and widespread windstorm," the National Weather Service said Monday, noting that the "Particularly Dangerous Situation" warning will be in effect from noon Tuesday through 4 p.m. Wednesday for areas of LA including Malibu.
In December, the coastal community faced the Franklin Fire, which destroyed more than two dozen structures, including a number of homes, as it burned through over 4,000 acres.
Several schools in the Pacific Palisades area are temporarily relocating students and staff, according to Los Angeles Unified School District spokesperson.
The campuses affected include Palisades Elementary School and Marquez Elementary School, which are relocating to Brentwood Elementary Science Magnet, while Paul Revere Middle School is being relocated to University High School Charter. Meanwhile, Corpus Christi School is evacuating as the brush fire continues to spread.
Check back for updates on this developing story.
Wind-whipped fire in L.A. prompts evacuations in Pacific Palisades
A fast-moving fire has forced more than 30,000 residents to evacuate from the Pacific Palisades area of Los Angeles amid "life-threatening and destructive" winds.
The fire, which broke out Tuesday morning at about 10:30 a.m. local time, was burning in the Pacific Palisades Highlands community. In just hours, the blaze grew to more than 1,200 acres, according to the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (CalFire). It has been fueled by a combination of dry conditions and powerful winds, which are likely to strengthen further overnight.
Gusts up to 100 mph are expected in the windiest spots.
Kelsey Trainor, an attorney who lives in Pacific Palisades, said she fled her neighborhood around 11:30 a.m., only to get stuck in bumper-to-bumper traffic on Palisades Drive.
"It was all smoke around us, fire everywhere. People are just honking their horns," Trainor said. She said she felt stuck, with flames on both sides of the only road out. "Gridlock – nowhere to go."
Trainor briefly left her car to offer help and a mask to an elderly woman who was having difficulty breathing. Ash was pelting her face, driven by intense winds, she said.
Trainor said it took more than an hour to get to safety.
"What’s really scary is that it felt really unsafe for people who were doing what they’re supposed to be doing," Trainor said, noting that she had a stockpile of supplies and a "fire bag" packed and had left before her phone chimed with an emergency alert.
"It felt really helpless," she said.
More than 10,300 households and 13,200 structures were threatened by the fire as of Tuesday afternoon, LAFD Fire Chief Kristin M. Crowley said in a news conference.
“We feel very blessed at this point that there’s no injuries that are reported,” Crowley said, but added that she had received reports of multiple structures damaged.
Flames could be seen popping up from condo buildings near Sunset Boulevard and from hillside homes.
Mallory Sobel, who lives in the Pacific Palisades Highlands neighborhood, said it took her two-and-a-half hours to drive out of the neighborhood, where homes were shadowed by plumes of thick smoke.
“I can feel it in my lungs right now. My throat is sore. My car was full of soot as I was making this slow, slow climb down. I wore a mask because it was that potent," Sobel said.
She added that she left with just a bag of emergency supplies and her family's passports.
“Good Samaritans are everywhere on the street, helping people navigate down the hill and helping people with their cars,” she said.
About 30 vehicles that had to be abandoned will be cleared by dozers to improve access, according to the fire department.
Flames were also a threat to communities that dot the canyons west of Pacific Palisades, including those in Rustic Canyon and Topanga Canyon.
"Be prepared for evacuation orders to come through," Erik Scott, a public information officer with the L.A. Fire Department, said in a video on X addressing residents. Scott added that the fire was "rapidly spreading due to the significant winds."
Margaret Stewart, another LAFD public information officer, said over 250 firefighters were responding to the blaze. The fire was moving generally toward the west, she added, though firefighters were also concerned about swirling fires and spot fires in the canyons that could send embers in any direction.
"They can carry up to a mile," Stewart said.
Conditions in Southern California were primed for a fast-moving wildfire. Los Angeles has not received significant rainfall in months, and National Weather Service forecasters had predicted "a life-threatening, destructive windstorm" from Tuesday afternoon through Wednesday morning.
Rich Thompson, a weather service meteorologist based in Oxnard, said downtown Los Angeles has received just 0.16 inches of rain since July 1.
Thompson said the weather service observed wind gusts of 50 to 80 mph on Tuesday and expected the danger to grow overnight.
"It looks like the winds will increase a little in strength later today and tonight," he said. "The Hollywood Hills, Beverly Hills area, Palos Verdes — they get Santa Ana winds, but not usually this strong."
Winter wildfires in California are often driven by the Santa Ana winds, which sweep down mountain slopes to bring hot, dry air to coastal areas. The winds typically lower humidity levels and can rapidly push any fires that start, particularly when the landscape is dry.
Climate change has increased the risk of such events, said Daniel Swain, a climate scientist at the University of California, Los Angeles, in a YouTube address.
"Climate change is increasing the overlap between extremely dry vegetation conditions later in the season and the occurrence of these wind events,” he said.
Thompson said the landscape would only become drier as the day wore on, a fearsome sign for firefighters.
"Humidities are starting to drop down in the 20 to 30% range and continue to drop down into the teens and single digits tomorrow and into Thursday," Thompson said, adding that "the wind will continue cranking tonight and tomorrow. There will be no relief."
Palisades Fire Rapidly Grows To 1,200 Acres As Blaze Erupts In Los Angeles Amid Dangerous Winds (Photos)
The Pacific Palisades, one of Los Angeles’ affluent residential neighborhoods, caught fire Tuesday morning in what has quickly expanded to a 1,200-acre blaze, marking southern California’s first large wildfire threat this week as much of the region is under a red flag warning created by strong winds and low humidity.
Los Angeles International Airport, which is about 19 miles south of the Pacific Palisades, has not experienced significant flight delays or cancellations as of Tuesday afternoon, according to FlightAware.
The National Weather Service’s fire outlook warns of elevated to critical fire weather Tuesday across much of southern California. The range of the critical fire weather alert will expand by 278 square miles Wednesday to a total of 5,035 square miles in the region. The NWS also issued an extreme fire weather alert—its highest designation for fire potential—from Wednesday to Thursday for a 1,463-square mile stretch of land that includes areas such as Santa Clarita, Simi Valley, Altadena, Moorpark and Santa Paula.
The appearance of weather conditions suggestive of La Niña, a climate phenomenon linked to drier conditions and drought in southern parts of the U.S., have likely contributed to prime fire conditions across southern California. Los Angeles in particular has seen an underwhelming amount of rain in the last eight months alongside a dry winter. The last time the city recorded over a tenth of an inch of rainfall was last May, according to the Los Angeles Times, contributing to drought. The mix of dry conditions and strong winds are the main catalysts of Tuesday's fires and also contributed to another fire in the Pacific Palisades in 2021 that burned more than 1,200 acres.
With negligible rain in 8 months, Southern California swings toward drought (LA Times)
Residents flee on foot as Palisades Fire torches hillside homes (LAist)
30,000 flee Palisades Fire as flames quickly spread, high winds slam Southern California
Thousands of people fled their homes as a brush fire in the Pacific Palisades quickly spread to 1,260 acres Tuesday, a blaze that authorities said could grow further as even stronger winds are expected through the night.
Click here for an evacuation map.
Winds in the area were blowing 40 mph when the wildfire sparked Tuesday morning before quickly exploding in size, spreading to 200 acres within an hour. The Los Angeles Fire Department first reported at 10:30 a.m. that the fire had broke out near 1190 North Piedra Morada Dr. Just hours later, around 3 p.m., fire authorities estimated it had reached 1,262 acres.
About 30,000 people have been evacuated while an estimated 10,367 houses remain threatened by the quickly moving flames, fire department and law enforcement officials said during a news conference Tuesday afternoon.
Santa Ana winds are expected to strengthen later in the evening, peaking from 10 p.m. Tuesday through 5 a.m. Wednesday, potentially complicating firefighting efforts and carrying flames even further.
"We're not out of the woods by any stretch of the imagination," Gov. Gavin Newsom told reporters Tuesday afternoon, saying that the state dispatched 110 fire engines to Southern California in anticipation of the high winds.
Newsom said he saw homes burning but authorities have not yet released an exact estimate for the damage.
Forecasters say gusts could reach up to 100 miles per hour in some parts of the region — likely the worst conditions seen since a windstorm in 2011 that left behind a $40 million in damage in Los Angeles County.
Mandatory evacuation orders were first announced around noon along with some evacuation warnings. The Pacific Coast Highway was completely shut down near Topanga Canyon Boulevard, according to the California Department of Transportation, as some drivers abandoned their cars on Sunset Boulevard to flee the flames growing closer.
The Los Angeles Fire Department first reported the blaze at 10:30 a.m., saying it sparked near 1190 North Piedra Morada Dr. and was estimated to be 20 acres at that time. About an hour later, around 11:30 a.m., the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection estimated the wildfire was 200 acres. Within hours, around 3 p.m., Cal Fire said it stood at 1,262 acres.
With the flames moving quickly Tuesday, fueled by powerful Santa Ana winds, some drivers abandoned their cars on Sunset near where the main LA roadway meets the PCH. Some said firefighters told them to get out and flee on foot. About 30 vehicles were left abandoned, according to the LA Fire Department.
Meanwhile, thousands of residents escaped their homes as firefighters continued battling the Pacific Palisades blaze.
Krishan Chaudry, a resident in the LA coastal community, said he could see flames burning from his backyard, which he said appeared suddenly. Thick, billowing plumes of black smoke were seen rising over the PCH as flames tore through hillsides.
"This happened just spur of the moment," Chaudry said. "We were just looking at the smoke, and then all of a sudden, we saw fire everywhere."
The Westwood Recreation Center has opened as an evacuation center and overnight shelter for evacuees and small animals, according to fire authorities.
The latest information from Cal Fire on evacuations and resources for those affected can be found here.
Many parts of Los Angeles and Ventura counties, including the area where the wildfire started, are facing a "Particularly Dangerous Situation" red flag warning this week. It's a relatively rare advisory the National Weather Service issues in more extreme cases, and it's the same warning that was issued just before the Mountain Fire tore through nearly 20,000 acres in neighboring Ventura County last year.
Forecasters have warned of a "life-threatening" windstorm that is likely the most powerful one to hit the region since 2011, which left behind millions of dollars in damage and led to 400,000 people losing power.
This week, Cal Fire has been preparing additional resources as much of the region braces for particularly strong Santa Ana winds, which can fuel and swiftly spread powerful wildfires. Gusts could up to around 60 to 70 mph in many areas and up to 100 mph in a few parts of Southern California, according to forecasters.
"This will likely be a life-threatening, destructive, and widespread windstorm," the National Weather Service said Monday, noting that the "Particularly Dangerous Situation" warning will be in effect from noon Tuesday through 4 p.m. Wednesday for areas of LA including Malibu.
In December, the coastal community faced the Franklin Fire, which destroyed more than two dozen structures, including a number of homes, as it burned through over 4,000 acres.
Several schools in the Pacific Palisades area are temporarily relocating students and staff, according to Los Angeles Unified School District spokesperson.
The campuses affected include Palisades Elementary School and Marquez Elementary School, which are relocating to Brentwood Elementary Science Magnet, while Paul Revere Middle School is being relocated to University High School Charter. Meanwhile, Corpus Christi School is evacuating as the brush fire continues to spread.
Check back for updates on this developing story.
Fast-moving Pacific Palisades fire damages structures, forces mass evacuations: Updates
A fast-moving brush fire fueled by dangerously high-speed Santa Ana winds threatened homes in the Pacific Palisades area of Los Angeles on Tuesday, prompting mass evacuation orders for roughly 30,000 residents and power shutoffs.
The fire was first reported at 10:10 a.m. local time along the West Sunset Boulevard, according to the Los Angeles Fire Department and CalFire. It grew to 200 acres within about 90 minutes, threatening nearby homes and emitting a thick black smoke. By late afternoon, Los Angeles Fire Chief Kristin Crowley said the fire had rapidly spread to 1,200 acres.
Crowley told reporters that several structures have been damaged and no injuries have been reported. The chief said over 10,000 households and 13,000 structures are threatened.
California Gov. Gavin Newsom urged residents to heed evacuation orders as multiple law enforcement agencies came together to combat the blaze.
"By no stretch of the imagination are we out of the woods," Newsom said.
Public safety power shutoffs affected nearly 4,200 Southern California Edison customers in Los Angeles County and another 400 in Ventura County, according to the utility. Additional shutoffs were being considered for more than 400,000 customers across Southern California.
Pacific Palisades, a neighborhood of Los Angeles, has 9,400 homes with 27,000 residents, according to the Pacific Palisades Chamber of Commerce. The area has been touted by real estate brokers as an oasis of tranquility and understated elegance and home to numerous A-list celebrities.
California wildfire map: Track the Palisades Fire as evacuations ordered in Los Angeles
With the explosive fire already blazing, and 80 to 90mph winds projected, UCLA Professor Alex Hall described the conditions as "one of the most powerful wind events of the season."
Hall, director of the university’s Institute of the Environment and Sustainability, said weather conditions in Southern California over the last year – including a hot summer and dry fall — have created "plenty of fuel for potential wildfires."
"These intense winds have the potential to turn a small spark into a conflagration that eats up thousands of acres with alarming speed — a dynamic that is only intensifying with the warmer temperatures of a changing climate," he said.
The worst of the conditions are likely Tuesday night into early Wednesday morning, UCLA Climate Scientist Daniel Swain said.
"The atmospheric blow dryer is really going to dry things out even further," she said, suggesting that the longer the wind conditions last, the dryer vegetation will become.
"The reality is that there's going to be a very long period of high fire risk."
— Elizabeth Weise and Karissa Waddick
The Pacific Palisades fire threatened thousands of structures on Tuesday afternoon, including one of the most beloved educational centers and art museums in Southern California.
Aerial footage and images shared on social media showed smoke approaching the Getty Villa as the fast-growing fire impacted areas along the Pacific Coast Highway.
Alexandria Sivak, Getty Villa spokesperson, told USA TODAY that the museum is already closed to the public on Tuesdays but was now closed to non-emergency staff members.
"We are in ongoing contact with LAFD and closely monitoring the situation," Sivak said. "We will provide updates as available."
Billionaire oilman and art patron J. Paul Getty opened the Getty Villa in 1974, according to the nonprofit Los Angeles Conservancy. The villa, which holds a large collection of Roman and Greek artifacts and antiquities, was modeled after a Roman country villa.
Earlier Tuesday, Sivak told Fox News that the villa site was safe. Deadline.com reported that the facility has a detailed plan to keep the art safe such as having fireproof walls.
— Thao Nguyen
Officials shut down all traffic on Pacific Coast Highway at Topanga Canyon Boulevard due to the fire, according to the California Department of Transportation.
Traffic jams could be seen along the highway, a crucial artery, and on roads near the Pacific Palisades, video from NBC Los Angeles shows. The City of Santa Monica additionally closed a westbound portion of Interstate 10 to help smooth fire evacuations, officials said in a social media post.
Some people have abandoned their cars as they seek to flee the area. About 30 vehicles have been left on roadways, according to the Los Angeles Fire Department, which is clearing them to allow emergency response crews better access to the area.
Actor James Woods posted a video to X showing fire raging near his deck. He had posted video earlier of flames threatening his neighborhood as giant palm trees swayed from the wind and plumes of smoke filled the air.
“I’m standing in my driveway getting ready to evacuate,” Woods said, adding several planes had flown over the area and dropped water.
President Joe Biden canceled an event to dedicate two national monuments previously scheduled Tuesday for Box Canyon, California, because of the dangerously high-speed Santa Ana winds and wildfire.
Biden arrived in Los Angeles late Monday night to announce the creation of the Chuckwalla National Monument and the Sáttítla Highlands National Monument. He was set to fly to the Eastern Coachella Valley the next day for the event.
Biden remains in Los Angeles. The White House said the event will be rescheduled for next week at the White House.
The new monuments – announced two weeks before Biden’s White House term ends – is part of the president’s land conservation agenda. On Monday, he used executive authority to ban offshore drilling off the Atlantic and Pacific coasts including off the California coastline.
– Joey Garrison, USA TODAY
Karla Mendoza, 36, was driving for the food delivery company DoorDash in Santa Monica Tuesday when she noticed the fire around 10:20 a.m, she told USA TODAY. She didn’t realize how close it was to her route when she went to pick up an order at a cafe in Palisades Park.
When Mendoza arrived five minutes later, she said clouds of smoke were billowing and ash was raining down.
“As I’m driving, I was like ‘Oh my God, this is getting worse. The winds are really bad,” Mendoza said. “We had no idea how close it was and how fast it was going to move.”
Mendoza said she saw two firetrucks speed up the Pacific Coast Highway onto Sunset Boulevard – and then saw others from Los Angeles and Beverly Hills quickly follow.
As she evacuated, traffic began to pick up along the highway, but Mendoza was able to get out of the area before the roads became gridlocked.
“When I got back to Santa Monica, I could smell the fire on me,” she said. “That’s how fast it was.”
A high risk for dangerous fire weather conditions is present for most of Los Angeles and Ventura Counties, the National Weather Service said, adding that "widespread damaging winds and low humidities will likely cause fire starts to rapidly grow in size with extreme fire behavior."
The agency said damaging wind gusts between 50-80 mph, with isolated gusts between 80-100 mph for mountains and foothills are expected. Power outages are also expected Tuesday afternoon through Wednesday, according to the NWS.
Forecasters urged residents to use extreme caution with any potential ignition sources.
Winds in the Los Angeles County mountains had already reached around 80 mph by Tuesday morning and were expected to start moving into parts of Ventura County, said Mike Wofford, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Oxnard, California.
The Santa Ana winds fueling the flames are expected to peak Tuesday night into Wednesday morning. The forecast called for wind speeds to reach 80 mph or higher and humidity levels to bottom out in the teens or even single digits.
Authorities urged the public to avoid any activity that could generate a spark, saying any fire that ignites could spread quickly. With so little rain, the vegetation is tinder dry.
“It is a kind of a worst-case scenario situation," Wofford said.
– Cheri Carlson, Ventura County Star
Contributing: Brian Day, Victorville Daily Press; Cheri Carlson and Gretchen Wenner, Ventura County Star; Joey Garrison, Saman Shafiq and Gabe Hauari, USA TODAY
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Pacific Palisades fire in Los Angeles prompts mass evacuation orders
Palisades Fire live updates: Wildfires spread in Los Angeles, prompting mandatory evacuations, as Santa Ana winds expected to intensify
Fueled by strong Santa Ana winds gusting to 80 miles per hour, low humidity and ongoing drought conditions, wildfires erupted Tuesday in Southern California, threatening homes in Pacific Palisades.
The Palisades Fire sprang to life Tuesday morning in the hills north of Malibu, leading officials to issue evacuation orders for thousands of residents.
"In preparation for high winds, LAFD pre-deployed strike teams in and near areas prone to wildfire," Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass said in a message posted to social media. "Firefighters are now actively and aggressively responding to the #PalisadesFire with support from regional partners. Angelenos in the area are urged to heed evacuation warnings."
The National Weather Service has upgraded the wildfire risk to much of the Los Angeles area to "extremely critical," the most serious designation, through Wednesday morning.
Here are the latest developments.
